I have posted something similar to this recently but now things have changed.
My son has allergies that affect his eyes. I put Patanol in his eyes a couple of times a day for dryness and itchiness. He blinks alot at times and scrunches his eyes because they bother him. It is and was noticeable before he was on ADHD meds. However, we can tell that it seems to be worse when he is on meds.
That being said, we went to the dr. this past Wed. about this and she said to stop the ADHD meds (because of the tics) until we can get an appt. with a Neuropsych. who knows more about the meds than she. We stoped the meds on Thursday but I HAD to give them to him today. You know how it is!!! Anyway, he was ticing his before the meds and it did seem to get a little worse after the meds.
My question - will it hurt to keep on the meds until we can an appt. (who knows when that will be) OR can I suggest to our regular dr. to try a different med in the other "family"?
I homeschool him so I am the one with him all day every day. His little brother will a break from him 3 mornings a week when he goes to preschool. I am also afraid that my ADHD som is going to fall even more behind in "school" than he is now since we were told to stop the meds.
What am I to do?
PLEASE NO TROLLS ANSWERING. THIS ALSO MEANS BALANCED, REALITY, CYRUS, GUESTS, ETC. PLERASE DO NOT WASTE MY TIME IN REPLYING!
You know better than anyone. Weigh the positives and negatives from both sides. Just to be on the safe side, I think I would go along with the doc but possibly ask for another type of med. It's a decision only you can make. cynthiatweedle38686.6420949074
My personal opinion, and, yes, I live with a kid who was once so hyper I swore he could fly, is I'd never give any child with tics a stimulant until after I knew what caused the tics and probably not until after getting two opinions from Neurologists. I would somehow handle the hyperness a different way or use meds that do not exaberate tics. I know sometimes when meds start tics, they don't go away. Maybe they can also make a tic disorder worse. I"m not sure, but I AM sure of what I'd do about the meds and tics. It's just my opinion though.
My 12-year-old son has ADHD, anxiety, tic disorder and migraines (the latter two fueled by anxiety). We have been told by our docs that tics are exacerbated, but not caused by stimulants. Having said that, Adderall made my son's tics so noticeable that we stopped it. And he was recently on Risperdal, which is supposed to make tics better but his mouth-opening and lip-licking tics are so bad right now that he has a rash all around his mouth. So we took him off Risperdal, too, in the event it was making his tics worse.
I agree your son needs to have an evaluation by a neurologist (who is a medical doctor and can prescribe meds) rather than a neuropsychologist, who can diagnose many childhood disorders but is not a medical doctor and cannot prescribe meds). Neurologists are the ones who treat tic disorders and Tourette's Syndrome. Before going ahead with any other meds, in your shoes, I would want to know specifically what I'm dealing with. Good luck!
Thank you! Thank you! I am going to call Neuro. today!
It's hard to know exactly what your son's neurologist will do because every neurologist is different. I have two children who have been to neurologists for migraine management (and we have discussed my son's tics with his neurologist). Both docs took very thorough medical and family histories. Both did standard neurological functioning tests that include having the child walk on tiptoes and along a straight line and having the child touch his index finger to his own nose and then to the doctor's hand, etc. (I'm not a doctor so I have no idea what these tests measure.)
BTW, my son's new pdoc saw him today and was very concerned about my son's tics because the lip licking has caused a bacterial infection around his mouth (went to the ped today, too!). The pdoc wanted him off ALL meds, including Focalin XR for ADHD, to see if we could calm his tics down. In my son's case, I think it is warranted because his tics are causing a physical problem. It will be interesting to see what the neurologist says about your son's tics. Please keep us posted.
It was actually a ped. Neuro. that my doc referred us to. I am waiting now for them to call me back.
What can I expect when I actually go?
We have an appt. for this Friday with the Neuro.Good news! Please let us know what happens. I'm particularly interested given my son's current situation. His tics are a little better, but not gone by any means in spite of no meds since last Friday. We go back to the pdoc on Monday.
We went to the child Neuro. today and they have scheduled for us to have an EEG on the 19th of Dec. just to rule our seizures.
He changed the meds from Ritalin LA to Adderall XR (which I got free with a coupon he gave us!) then if that doesn't work Focalin. The last med we are going to try will be Straterra.
Good luck!!
I find it odd how one can find a drug so agreeable and another find it so negative. I understand it however. I love Ritalin LA. But I am a 37 year old (I had a birthday yesterday!!!!). But, I hated Concerta. And it's the same drug just a different way to dose. I did okay on Strattera but it did not address my focus and organizational problems. It DID, however make me feel clear headed and slowed down some of my "thinking". My doctor didn't think it did enough to keep me on it though....risk vs benefit type of thing. I was nervous going off of Strattera because I liked it.
Best of luck to you and your son. I know it must hurt you to see him this way. I'm only glad I have to deal with this in only myself. Keep us posted and keep the faith!!
Thank you so much for your kindness!!!
I just realized something about my son's tics!! I kinda feel dumb. He DOES have really bad allergeries and has always had trouble with his eyes bothering him. When I sat down and really thought about it I remembered that when I was younger and tried to wear contacts I couldn't b/c my eyes wear too dry. I was always blinking them (like tics).
Taylor only really seems to "get" the tics in the late afternoon and when we are at home. Yesterday we did "school" (I homeschool) at the church where my younger is on preschool and he not once had the eye tics! We came home, ate lunch, put 4yr old and another child down for nap at 2pm. Around 4-5pm was when he started with his eyes. Today again, we went to Walmart in the a.m., had lunch out, came home and the tics started!!
I am beginning to think that he may also be allergeric to something in our house. Am I crazy to think this?
Twcooke,
I don't think the comments about allergic reactions is crazy at all! My son is allergic to 18 different things in the environment and goes for weekly allergy shots, plus takes daily medication. He was rubbing his nose all the time, like a twitch, before we switched his daily allergy meds three weeks ago. Has your son been tested for allergies? Also, there are allergy eye drops you can buy and drops for dry eyes that your optometrist can give you. You may want to try those, just to see if they help.
Good luck and let us know what happens.
Our allergist will start allergy testing at age 6 so maybe he's old enough. Hope so for your sake.
Yes, the doctor's appointments are exhausting!!! Try having two kids with issues -- we're either talking to or in a doctor's office practically daily.
We do have allergy eye drops that we use. Sometimes they work, sometimes they don't. A couple of years ago we were told to wait until he was older to the allergy testing. He is now 6yr so I am going to ask his ped. about this again. It is starting to get overwhelming - with dr. appt. He goes the 19th for the EEG, I have to make an appt. with a ped. dentist b/c the enamel on one tooth did not harden. I also have 3 different dr. appts that I need to make but am waiting to get him taken care of first.
I recently had to fill out forms for my son to be tested for Special Education services in school, and one of the questions was whether or not he regularly saw a doctor, psychiatrist or counselor. I was given one line to explain, if my answer was yes. Yeah, right! Let's see, an ENT for sinuses, an allergist for allergies and asthma, a psychologist for PTSD resolution, and a psychiatrist for ADHD/Anxiety meds. I had to put arrows and write on the back of the page .
I don't think you're crazy to think it, but you need to make sure they're not tics. Don't laugh -- we initially thought my son's nose bridge tics were caused by his wearing a baseball cap nearly 24/7. We removed the cap, and the tics seemed to go away. It was only later when new tics appeared that we realized he had had tics all along.
Have you had your son skin tested for allergies so you know exactly what he's allergic to? Can you minimize those allergens in your house? Just a thought . . .
I added some update research information about tics and stimulants to this thread:
http://www.adhdnews.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=4221&P N=1
It's not uncommon for tics to be exacerbated by other sensory phenomena.
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Tourette Syndrome - Now What?
http://tourettenowwhat.tripod.com
The "tics before meds" claim is very rare, usually presented by someone in the drug business trying to belittle the warnings about the permanently disabling tics that are know to follow use of these drugs, esepcially Ritalin. For a while, the ADHD industry argument that was "the tic tendency was already there, the drug just brought it to the surface." What BS!!!! They are awfully good at doublespeak -- claim a disease, push the drugs, watch the side affects appear, then claim the side affects are part of the disease!! Mindboggling ethical questions there!!!The above poster is a troll.